Take, get, board, alight (transport)

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25-Sep-2004, 11:42
Wai_Wai

Take, get, board, alight (transport)

Take, get, board, alight (transport)

Please correct me if I am wrong.
=============================
Usage relating to going into/out of a transport:

If going into a public transport
Take a bus/taxi
Get on [NOT into] a bus/lift; Get into a taxi
Board a bus/taxi

If going out of a transport
Take off a bus/taxi
Get off [NOT out of] a bus/lift. Get out of a taxi
Alight a bus/taxi
=============================

If all are correct, please send a message to confirm.
If any mistake, it would be very grateful if you can point it out.
26-Sep-2004, 04:10
Mister Micawber

I could get into and out of an elevator/lift.

I could board a bus but not a taxi.

And alight from a bus, not a taxi.

This is a Canadian American opinion.
26-Sep-2004, 11:00
Casiopea

Re: Take, get, board, alight (transport)

Take a bus/taxi/train/plane :D
Get on a bus/lift/train/plane :D (Note, Get on board; Get in the bus door)
Get in(to) a taxi :D
Board a bus/taxi/train/plane :D

Take off a bus/taxi :( Get off the bus (step down); Get out of the taxi)
Get off a bus/lift/train/plane. :D
Get out of a taxi :D
Alight a bus/train/plane :D (Step down from)
Alight a taxi :(

All the best, :D
27-Sep-2004, 06:38
Wai_Wai

Hi. Thanks for your answer.
Further questions:

About "board"
Is it the same as "get on/off"?
"Get on/off" is used with large transport, something that you can just walk in without bending your body. The antonym is "Get into /out of".

Is "board" used in spoken language?

take off
An example is http://www.ijs.si/ijs/ijs-find.html. (search for "take off")
I searched the web a bit on how people say about leaving transport.
Very usually, it is "get off"
1 is "go off"
1 is "take off"

Q:
- is "go or take off" correct? Or does the author use wrongly?

Get on or get into a lift
I think it should be get on.
To my knowledge, "get on" is used for a transport which you can walk in without bending your body. So a lift is a candidate.

An example is: http://www.eeggs.com/items/12697.html
http://www.uwpd.wisc.edu/crimeprv/elevator.htm
27-Sep-2004, 06:41
Wai_Wai

alight

Its frequency
I made a search relating to its frequency.
http://www.google.com/search?num=50...zh-TW%7Clang_en
There are 295,000 entries to return. (NB: the number may not be really reliable because some entries might not use "alight" in the sense of "stepping down from a vehicle". And some entries might skip in the Google search)

I deem "alight" can still be seen in written language. But I wonder if it is used in spoken language.

Its usage

Relating to the usage pattern of alight:
- somebody alights (from) a vehicle

From what you say, alight seems to be equal to "board", "get on". Right?

By the way, sometimes I wonder why uncommon words are still often used. To me, the main use of language is to communicate and facilitate communication. Using uncommon words (which can be replaced by plain words) are no good to communication. Meaning of a word is not obvious indeed if people do not know what it means.

What's more, it burdens non-native language learners. They have to spend more time to learn more difficult/uncommon words in order to understand one's passage. So it seems bad for a train station to use "alight" instead of "get off".

Anyway, my little opinion.
27-Sep-2004, 10:45
Casiopea

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wai_Wai

Hi. Thanks for your answer.
Further questions:

About "board"
Is it the same as "get on/off"?
"Get on/off" is used with large transport, something that you can just walk in without bending your body. The antonym is "Get into /out of".

Is "board" used in spoken language?

One gets on and off a bike, but one doesn't board a bike. People board plane, boats, trains (i.e., things that take you on a journey. They have floor boards one can walk on: get on board ~ walk on board). :D

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wai_Wai

take off
An example is http://www.ijs.si/ijs/ijs-find.html. (search for "take off")
I searched the web a bit on how people say about leaving transport.
Very usually, it is "get off"
1 is "go off"
1 is "take off"

A plane takes off (the ground), so does a rocket. In that sense, take off means go up. Boats and taxis and cars and trains and bikes, and even people, 'take off' but in that sense it means, leave. Idiomatic: Take off! means, get lost!, go away!

Try, incorrectly, not *wrongly. :wink:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wai_Wai

Get on or get into a lift
I think it should be get on.
To my knowledge, "get on" is used for a transport which you can walk in without bending your body. So a lift is a candidate.

Get on ~ walk on; lift your body up onto (i.e., a motorbike). Get in ~ Get inside the space (i.e., a taxi cab, an elevator, a bus, a car, and so on.

All the best, :D
27-Sep-2004, 11:18
Wai_Wai

Quote:

One gets on and off a bike, but one doesn't board a bike. People board plane, boats, trains (i.e., things that take you on a journey. They have floor boards one can walk on: get on board ~ walk on board).

Thanks.
So I should add 1 more conditions when using "board" - walk in without bending + taking public transport

Quote:

A plane takes off (the ground), so does a rocket. In that sense, take off means go up. Boats and taxis and cars and trains and bikes, and even people, 'take off' but in that sense it means, leave. Idiomatic: Take off! means, get lost!, go away!

But can "take off and go off" be used with leaving public transport?
Eg: I take off the bus/taxi.
I go off the bus/taxi.

Quote:

Try, incorrectly, not *wrongly.

I have a similar queston related to the above.
See http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/vi...?p=41955#41955

Quote:

Get on ~ walk on; lift your body up onto (i.e., a motorbike). Get in ~ Get inside the space (i.e., a taxi cab, an elevator, a bus, a car, and so on.

Sorry, what do you really mean?
Do you mean "get on/into // off/out of a lift" is possible depending on what you emphasise?

If so, does it imply that I can even say "get into // out of a bus/train/plane"?
27-Sep-2004, 11:47
Casiopea

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wai_Wai

But can "take off and go off" be used with leaving public transport?
Eg: I take off the bus/taxi; I go off the bus/taxi.

Try,

I get off the bus. (step down)
I get out of the taxi. (step out of)

Quote:

Try, incorrectly, not *wrongly.

I have a similar queston related to the above.
See http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/vi...?p=41955#41955[/quote]

Notes and replied to. :wink:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wai_Wai

Do you mean "get on/into/off/out of a lift" is possible depending on what you emphasize?

get off the lift (OK) (walk off)
get in(to) the left (OK) (walk into the space)
get out of the lift (OK) (walk out of the space)

Quote:

Originally Posted by jack

If so, does it imply that I can even say "get into/out of a bus/train/plane"?

These are subject to dialect and idiolect:

get in(to) a bus (OK)
get out of a bus (OK)
get in(to) a train (OK)
get out of the train (OK)
get in(to) the plane (OK)
get out of the plane (OK)

All the best, :D